The Forgotten Unicorn
by Prelude.of.Decay
Summary: The times have changed and lives wither away like the petals on a darkened rose...and somehow the unicorns begin to change just as mortals do.
1. Default Chapter

The Forgotten Unicorn

The night was young and crisp...and the small unicorn laid among the sacred forest. She was pure and gleaming white underneath the shining stars in the heavens. Her coat was immaculate against the glowing moon and her mane seeped only a magical dust that fell from her glistening horn and would fall onto the earth as she gracefully floated through her forest...her home. Wherever she stepped, her presence would bless whomever or whatever she had passed. And under this enchanted night sky, she laid among her fellow unicorns and kept a keen eye on the home that she had been born unto. She was a young unicorn...not even into her hundreds, as most of her fellow unicorns were. But she remained steady and patient as she awaited for the present century to pass her by. 

This was her mother's century...for her mother had once been human. Her mother had walked the earth on two strong and mortal legs and had sought and lived the fears and regrets that all humans possess. And their weaknesses still entwined within her soul...as if she were still in her mortal body. But she was not. She would still invite the longings and memories within her dreams...and many times they would overcome her...and she would once again relive those moments. During these times, the small unicorn would wonder of her mother's memories, but would never ask her mother of them. She was too afraid...too afraid of what it might do to her mother. For ever since the release of the unicorns from a dark evil, the unicorns had never been the same. 

Unicorns were never meant to mourn or grieve. They were never forgetful or lost within temptations or immoralities. And they would never...never regret. That was... until now. Now unicorns began to feel and to posses emotions. And they would look upon the world and watch the humans and other living creatures live...and choose...and die. And they would grieve these souls...and shed their immortal tears over the creatures' short lives. And every creature that had roamed the earth...had a special place in each of their hearts and not one would ever be forgotten.


	2. the small unicorn

And time began to start passing by the unicorns slowly...just as it did with the mortals. But this time change would not effect the unicorns affably...but rather, it was like a curse. A curse which would make the mortals more known to the unicorns--and therefore letting the unicorns aggrieve with the loss of their lives. And every time a mortal would pass from this life to the next, they would leave behind them many dispirited unicorns who had loved and felt their presence within their lives. Thus--was how the unicorns lived.

***

The small unicorn stirred slightly amongst the other young unicorns. She had slept peacefully under the enchanted night sky and the shining moon gave away her only disguise as a plain white horse. For, as the moon's light shone upon her, her entire self would shine just as beautifully as the moon itself. And this may have been the very reason that Mother Earth had given her the name of Moonlight. But, even so, this very unicorn was the smallest of the entire unicorn race of the deep forests. And thus she was called only The Small Unicorn. 

And so this night lingered longer than any night had ever been before. This night, it seemed, had a certain event that would make it special--maybe even an event that would change the course of the future. And it did. Because on this captivated night--a small child was born. A child unlike one that had ever been born to the earth before. And somehow, this child seemed to call out into the night--the small unicorn. 


	3. Mother Earth

And it was as if the small unicorn could hear the call in her dreams, for in the silver mists that drifted within her mind, carried a blessed image.

A woman, dressed in shining garments of gleaming white appeared to the small unicorn. Her hair, it seemed, was the light itself, and her eyes glowed a light shade of soft blue. The small unicorn seemed to smile in her mind, because the beautiful woman smiled gently to her. And the woman then outstretched her light hand towards the sleeping, small unicorn, and beckoned the unicorn towards her shining spirit. The small unicorn could feel herself nodding and approaching the divine vision; and as she neared, the woman raised her hand.

**_A child is born unto the world, _**the spirit spoke with her mind. And as the words echoed the small unicorn's heart, the woman held within her hands...an image. The small unicorn felt her heart ache as she came even closer to the woman, as so to see the image that the woman so wanted the small unicorn to see. And as the unicorn's eyes laid upon the image, she could see a small child, still wet from its birthing. The child, a female human, seemed unlike any other human child...for the child did not cry. 

"Why does the child stay silent?" the small unicorn questioned. The woman did not answer, but continued to look within her delicate, white hands. The small unicorn gave her attention back to the vision of the child. The child looked like any other child. She was reddened and her eyes were closed still. Her small baby fists were clenched together and her knuckled became white. 

**_This child is in great danger. _**The woman explained to the small unicorn, without even meeting her gaze. **_She could be the one that will endanger the unicorns...or she could be the one who will save them,_** the woman spoke. The small unicorn did not understand. 

"What do you mean?" she asked. At this question, the beautiful woman turned her head to the unicorn. She gazed at the small unicorn with her light blue eyes and within these eyes, the small unicorn saw the world with its many creatures. Her eyes showed pain and suffering in order to maintain peace and life. They showed the race of humans--with their greed and sins; and the effort to keep the only****goodness that was found within their hearts. And at these visions, the small unicorn gasped. "You--you are the...Mother Earth," the small unicorn announced, her words hardly leaving her mouth. The woman smiled. 

**_Yes I am, _**she answered, **_and I come to you in your dream to warn you._**

"Warn me of what? Of the child?" the small unicorn questioned. Mother Earth nodded.

**_Yes. I went to great measures to warn you. I took a form in which you will understand more of. I--am not truly a form...I am the wind that cools your skin, and the sun that warms your face...even the ground upon which you stand. I am everywhere around you. And I realized that my help is greatly needed. _**Mother Earth paused and sighed. **_I can also see some part of the future. And I have watched you and all of the rest of the unicorns in great hope. You are the only sacred creatures left in the world...and I feel a great responsibility to keep it so. But, the child----she needs to be helped. _** ****


	4. The child

Author's Note: Okay, now just forget the last sentence you last read in Chapter 3. This will start out with that sentence...just made better. Confusing? Sorry. Anyway, please Review! I love to read reviews. I've been very busy lately and I haven't updated that much. Sorry. I've been busy with stupid Final Exams. Actually, we haven't taken them yet--but we will. Next week is Exam week and I'm studying my butt off. I finished studying for History Exams and now I need to study for Biology2. :( I hate biology. Anywhoo, here's chapter 4 and PLEASE REVIEW. Anything to ease my stress!

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****

But the child----right now she must be the one to whom we shall give our whole to save. She needs our help. And the entire race of the unicorns need her. 

"Why? What does the child hold in the future?" The small unicorn was mystified. She had never thought of the future, and hardly even thought of the past. Because that was the way of unicorns. They never questioned their existence, and they lived every day as if each new day were a miracle. A miracle among miracles. There was no need to think of what will come, or what had come to pass. To them, everything was beautiful...a gift from the Gods in the heavens. But only one unicorn did not see this, because she had seen the world through the eyes of the mortals, and her eyes were still under their curse. 

**_ I have seen in my visions that this child will be gifted. Gifted in such a way that it will give her such power. A power that can save...or a power that could destroy. _**Mother Earth sighed, her breath in clouds of white lace. **_In my visions, I saw this child as a young woman. She was unlike almost all other mortals, for she could see the unicorns. _**

The unicorn gasped. "She can...see us?" Mother Earth nodded.

**_There are very few who can. Mortals only see unicorns as mere horses...because they have lost their belief. _**The small unicorn nodded, because she had been taught this. She had also been warned to stay away from those mortals...because they only see unicorns as horses, and then their greed overcomes them and they do anything to catch these creatures. Though, she had never been told that there were those who _could _see them. 

**_And this child, _**Mother Earth continued, **_realized what great power she held. But, she was used by the mortals to use her powers to harm the unicorns. And hence brought the unicorns to darkness._**

"How could she bring us to darkness?" the small unicorn whispered. She was barely able to speak.

**_I do not know. My vision would not tell me so. But the vision showed me that she could be stopped. _**

"How?"

**_Her powers mustn't be used for evil. They must be used for goodness. She could use her powers to save the unicorns._**

"What do you mean? How could she save us...if we were to be destroyed by her herself?"

**_Because with the welcoming of every century, it has become harder for the unicorns and their survival. You have sensed that, haven't you? _**The unicorn nodded. **_And soon the time will come when the unicorns will die out of the world. It hasn't been stopped yet. Already some unicorns have fallen. _**She paused once more. **_They have been taken by the mortals, and every day that a unicorn is imprisoned, they become more and more like an ordinary horse. And so some of them have. If the mortals are not stopped, the unicorns will be gone forever. The darkness of evil had been stopped once, with the defeat of the Red Bull, and his servant Haggard--a king who had enslaved the unicorns, so that they would be destroyed. And it was your mother who had stopped him. She had risked her life to save her race...and she did. But even that could not stop what would happen in the later years. But now we must face it. We could use this child's powers to stop the mortals, instead of helping them. _**

"How could we make her help us?" the small unicorn questioned. Mother Earth smiled.

**_That is where you stand. I was told to tell you this...by entering your dreams. And so I have. It must be you who shall find this child, and save the unicorns from the darkness._**


	5. Departure

Author's note: Here's another chapter. Keep Reviewing. I'm off for the summer and hopefully I'll be able to post a lot more. Unless I go on that vacation to Hawaii that we've been planning to take. :)

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"What shall I do?" the unicorn asked, her face full of deep concern. She suddenly felt a great sorrow burden upon her back. She knew that what Mother Earth was about to tell her would effect her life in such a greatness that she could never have dreamed of. 

**_You must find this child...among the distant hills and mountains, far away from the Unicorns' Forest. She lives among royalty in the world of mortals. But this you must heed: You must never fall into the mortals world and become one of them. If you do so, the race of the unicorns may just as well be forgotten, because they will no longer exist...except among children's fairytales. _**And then Mother Earth began to fade from the small unicorn's eyes. **_You must ask the immortals for guidance. Only then will you succeed. _**

"Wait! Do not leave me! I do not know which way to go!" the unicorn cried, her voice becoming louder in her dreams. Mother Earth's smile then disappeared and her presence faded. **_We depend on you_**, were her last words of the small unicorn's dream. And then the unicorn awoke. 

****

Upon the sacred forest's floor, the small unicorn shook and trembled as she woke up from her sleep. "I cannot do this," she said, her voice echoing in reply. 

"Cannot do what, small one?" a voice behind her quietly asked. The small unicorn knew this voice by heart, and just the sound of it brought her peace. It was her mother. The most beautiful and wise of all the sacred unicorns. Her mane was just as light as the light itself and her entire body seemed to shimmer endlessly. 

The small unicorn stood up from the forest floor and turned slowly to her mother. "The Mother Earth has come to me in my dreams," she replied. 

"Yes, I know."

"How?" The small unicorn was mystified. 

"She has come to me many times. And she has told me of you, and what you must do. She believes that you are the only one who can fulfill this quest. And I believe that you can."

"Why do _you _not wish to fulfill this quest? Why must I?" the small unicorn questioned, the magical dust from her shining horn becoming dimmer. And for a small moment, the two stood across each other in stillness, the only two glowing figures in the enchanted dark night. They were obviously mother and daughter to anyone who took the smallest second to glance at them, because the small unicorn was almost the exact reflection of her wise and beautiful mother, only smaller. 

"There are many things in life that you must not question. You do not ask the wind why it cools the earth, or the sun why it brings light into the world. They each have a reason for their existence and their purpose. The unicorns are placed upon this earth to remind others of that...because that is part of our purpose. We bring special joy and grace to the mortals that they have since lost. And as we speak, that grace is being forgotten just as we are. Now I speak to my daughter, the daughter of the earth, and she now questions her existence?" The mother unicorn's pale eyes were beginning to fade, for her sadness was weighing down her hopeful heart. 

"I am sorry, mother. I do not wish to question anything. I just wish to receive some sort of sign of what I shall do," the small unicorn whispered, her voice sweet and harmonious. She lifted her head to look into her mother's eyes for comfort, and as she did, she found a crystal of water fall down upon her mother's cheek. It was something that the small unicorn had never seen before in her life. Her heart ached to ask her mother of this, but her mind warned her not to. "I will leave the sacred forest," she whispered, "and I will find this child." 

The old unicorn lowered her head and did not look back at her daughter. The small unicorn turned to leave the forest, when her mother answered, "I believe in you."

****

The sacred forest was enchanting and magical as the small unicorn made her way through it. She could sense the forest whispering about her, wishing her peace and luck, and even warning her of what may come to pass. The small unicorn listened intently to what the forest had to say, and as she passed through the forest, she bowed her head so that the glowing tip of her horn could gently touch the earth, and blessed the grounds upon which she stood. "I will return," she whispered, and the forest answered her silently; an answer that could only be heard by the heart, and the small unicorn heard.


	6. Firefly

Author's note: Sorry I took so long...again. I've just really been having a hard time. But anyway, PLEASE review this. I don't care what you say, really. I'd just like to hear ANYTHING from you. Actually, I do care what you say, but whatever. I'll try not to sound too desperate, but if I do, well, I can't help it. Review!

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Firefly

*****

When the small unicorn had come to the end of the sacred forest, she stood silently and gazed at the land before her graceful eyes. She had never before seen the world that laid beyond the sacred forest for there was never a need to. She had only heard tales of the wickedness and depravity that lingered amongst the mortals and so became the foundation of their lives. But what she did not understand was how such evil could be in the world before her eyes. From what she saw, she could not even make herself believe that evil could exist.

To the small unicorn, it seemed as if the earth were just as pure as her sacred forest. She did not see the demons and darkness that she had been told reigned here. Instead she saw light from the glowing moon that spilled its enchanted light across the night covered earth. She saw peace as the trees whispered to one another, and hope as the creatures of the night flew above her shining horn. _But where are the mortal humans? _she asked herself. _I must find them. _She looked across the fields and forests that were laid before her, in hopes of finding the humans that she so needed to find. But there were none; none that her eyes could find. 

And as the small unicorn took her first step into the mortal world, she heard a faint whisper in her ear. "What is it that the purest one seeks?" the whisper asked. The unicorn looked about her, but could not find where the voice was coming from.

"I cannot see you. Show yourself," the small unicorn commanded. She waited eagerly to see the speaker.

"Ahh...but I am right beside you. I have followed you in the sacred forest, so that I may come to see what it is that you are seeking. And you have led me here...and this is where I shall stay, until I am filled with my sought out knowledge," the voice once again whispered. The small unicorn turned to her side, and found a small firefly floating near her right ear.

"You are a mere firefly. You could not have come from the sacred forest, because only the immortals dwell within its sacred abode. And you certainly are not of immortal blood," the unicorn replied, her horn glowing fiercely before the small creature.

"But that I am," the firefly spoke. "I have been among my kind, the immortals, for over three centuries, and will be for many centuries to come. I am not truly a mere firefly," he said, emphasizing the word mere, "but I am an immortal being who was only given this form for this present time."

"Yes...well, I must be on my way," the small unicorn explained. She started to walk away from the firefly and down the hill that she stood upon, until she heard the firefly once again talking into her ear.

"Well, that is fine that you have to be on your way. But you have yet to answer my question. I want to know what you are seeking," the firefly said. 

The small unicorn sighed out of frustration. "Very well....I am to seek a child in the world of mortals. Specifically a human mortal; one that decides the fate of my kind. And if I do not depart as soon as possible, I could be the one who lead my kind to an eternity of darkness. And already you have cost me valuable time, so I really _must _be on my way...right now, at this exact moment," she explained, as she started once more to leave.

She made her way down the hill and began to walk towards the distant forests that laid ahead. She wondered if the firefly would beleaguer her anymore, but after a few moments of silence, her thoughts left her and her mind was concentrated on the journey ahead.

"You are going the wrong way," a voice whispered into her ear yet again. The small unicorn jumped at the sound and immediately her thoughts returned. She sighed once more, but this time a very weary and aggravated sigh. 

"I thought I made myself quite clear," she spoke. The whisper laughed, a very small and fragile laugh.

"Yes, well, it would be quite different if you were actually going the _correct_ way to the mortal humans," the firefly added. "At the moment, you are heading towards the Witches' Forest, and that would not be a place that I would ever recommend...especially to an immortal unicorn such as yourself. You are in the real world now, and no magic of yours could ever save you from a witches' clan, and their impeccable use of the powerful black magic." The small unicorn nodded.

"And you have been here before?" she asked. 

"Correct. I have been to just about every place in the mortal world, and I think that I could be of great use to you on your quest," he replied. He glowed and flew to the unicorn's other ear. "And if I were with you to begin with, we would probably already have been near the mortals, and you would already be looking for that child of yours."

The small unicorn laughed. "And what is in it for you?" 

The firefly glowed. "Your company."

***** 

**__**


	7. Shadow Valley

A/N: Okay, I'm back again. I just came up with some ideas and I went on writing. Actually, I was all excited because my farmer neighbor's cows were running loose in our neighborhood and I thought it'd make a great diary entry. I went on the computer to type it up and I was like, "Well, why don't I just write more of my stories?" And I did. And here's another chapter. Oh, and I thought you might want to know, if you didn't know already, that there's going to be a live action Last Unicorn movie coming out. Isn't that great?! Plus, Peter S. Beagle is the screenwriter...and that just tells us that it's going to be so good. Probably not as good as the animated movie and the book...but still. Okay...I'm blabbing on too much. Sorry.

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And as the long and seemingly endless days passed before the two immortal creatures' eyes, they passed the many valleys and forests that stood between them and the child that they were seeking. The small unicorn was bemused by such beauty and wonder that the immortal earth had to offer her. She breathed the light air into her lungs, and bowed her horn to the ground many times, to give her gift of grace to earth and all of its mortals. Only, as the sun gleamed down upon her endlessly for many days, and the ground began to flaw her gleaming unicorn hooves, did she truly regret ever stepping out into the world that she had always been warned of. And the firefly did not help her thoughts either.

"Where _exactly _is this little child that we are looking for?" the firefly questioned the restless unicorn. The small unicorn shook her head and sighed.

"I do not know, little bug. I thought you said we would be where the mortals are by now. Where are they?" she asked angrily, her horn dimming. The firefly buzzed angrily in reply.

"First of all, I am NOT a bug. I am an immortal being who has taken the form of a mere firefly. And as an answer to your _extremely _rude question, I do not know why we do not see the mortals yet. I suppose we have been too slow or something. But we shall see them soon. And to enlighten you a bit, I do not know how we will _ever_ find that child of yours. That child is one among many. There are many, many mortals. Much more than the immortals. And so, if you do not find that certain child, it will not be of _my _fault. You should have asked that Mother Earth in your dreams for more specific details. Maybe...her name!" the firefly yelled, which only came as an annoying buzz in the ear of the small unicorn. 

The unicorn smiled wryly. "_Actually, _Mother Earth did tell me something more," she added. The firefly jumped eagerly in the air. 

"What? What did she say?" he cried out.

"She said that the child lives among royalty. She must be some sort of princess or duchess or something," the unicorn answered.

"Or she could just be a servant for a king."

"No. I doubt that. She would've said that the girl works for royalty or such like that. She said the child lives _among _royalty...therefore she probably _is _royalty."

"Okay, if you say so," the firefly replied. "So, now we are looking for royalty. This makes our search much easier, but still almost impossible."

"Nothing is impossible," the unicorn said, looking at the firefly. "I _will _find the child....and I shall save my kind--just as my mother had done so many years ago. A unicorn never questions their purpose...and they never ever doubt. And so, I know that I will find the child...because it is my purpose. It is not impossible." And the firefly looked into the eyes of the determined unicorn and he glowed in response. 

"Let us continue, purest one, because we must find this child of yours." 

***

On the second week of their quest, the small unicorn and the firefly came to a small, green valley that laid within the land of the Lost Mountains-the mountains covered in blankets of crystal snow and so high, that they were said to have reached the heavens of the Gods. The mountains were so immense, that they cast their shadows over the land, and shaded the valley from the warm sun, hence leaving its name as Shadow Valley--a cold name for a cold place.

The small unicorn stood upon the high edge overlooking the valley. Her immortal heart fluttered as she thought to herself, _The humans may be here. _She scanned the valley with her eyes of light, and then her glittering horn sparkled brightly from her sudden joy. "What is it that I see, Firefly?" she questioned her glowing companion.

The firefly flew above the unicorn's head and gazed, himself, at the valleybelow. "There is a small village below," he spoke. "There must be mortal humans there! We must go and see if they may know where the child is!" He flew in front of the unicorn and rested upon her white muzzle. "Let us go."

******

Thomas Wood was walking outside of his great estate to go observe his new horse trainer. He had just somehow come across him one day and the man explained that he was a horse trainer. That was all it took, and the man was hired. Thomas knew that it was his luck that he found this man...because usually no one would ever enter the valley. Shadow Valley's name spoke for itself. No one wanted to live there, not even Thomas. But he knew that one day he would leave, when he had enough money and a place to go. 

He had once been a great horse breeder...in another land. A land that was now only a memory for him, a memory that he would one day return to...he hoped. But one day, it all changed. He had become so famous and rich...but he wanted more. And that was when he heard of a distant valley--a valley of no name that was flourished and full of wild horses. He left for this land and he built his home within it. There, at first, were hundreds of horses-all beautiful and rare. And he caught the horses and caged them...willing to spend all of his time to train them and sell them. But as time went by, the horses began to loose life...and almost all at once they began to die.

Thomas was cursed, it seemed. His greed overcame him and killed each of the beautiful wild creatures he had caged. He had given up on himself, and he stayed locked away in his home, afraid to show his face again. But that was until his daughter brought him a gift. His sweet daughter, whom he had named Catherine, had come to his door one day and told him of a gift she had brought him. It was a beautiful foal...and it was now his. 

The man...was just another blessing to happen to come along at just the same time. And he--

Thomas stopped in his walk and stood in shock at the sight he was now seeing. _This couldn't be! _he

said to himself. He jumped into a run and rushed over to his trainer that stood in the horse ring, looking at

Thomas strangely. "Look! Up yonder!" Thomas whispered loudly, the blood rushing to his face. The trainer

looked to where Mr. Wood was pointing, and quickly he gasped.

"Why...it is a most beautiful creature!" the man said, swallowing hard. "A horse that beautiful must be worth thousands." And with that he stood up slowly.

"Catch it, Abir!" Thomas yelled to his trainer, who was already reaching for a long rope. _This one will be for Catherine, _Thomas thought. _The most beautiful of them all_


	8. Catherine

A/N: Here's another chapter! Make sure to review and tell me if it sucks or if I should go on. I'll try to update as much as possible. Review!

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The small unicorn's heartfilled with more joy than she had ever felt. This feeling...it was one that she had never felt before. A feeling that only mortals possessed. But the unicorns were becoming more and more like the mortals each day...and this would not be the first time the small unicorn would feel this way. Though, for different reasons. Because as the small unicorn gracefully stepped towards the village, her pure gleaming eyes caught sight of humans. Mortal humans.

There were two of them, staring at her as she was staring at them. And for a small moment, with their eyes locked unto each others, the small unicorn saw kindness and love within their eyes. _The immortals were wrong. There is many good in this earth...and I have found it, _she thought.The small unicorn stepped towards them...her heart filling with even more happiness with every step that she took. 

"Abir!" one of the men shouted. The unicorn flinched at the sound of the man's course voice. "Catch her, Abir!" And then the other man grabbed something that the small unicorn could not make out. He stepped slowly towards the unicorn...and began whispering to her.

"Here, beauty," the man whispered. "Come on, horse. There is no need to be afraid." And that was when the unicorn knew that the man was not what she had thought. He was just like every other mortal. He could not see her as she truly was.

"I am not a unicorn to him," the unicorn spoke to the Firefly. "He does not see me as I am." And then the unicorn stepped back away from the man. 

"Nooo...beauty. Don't be afraid. Abir will not hurt you," the man whispered slowly, stepping closer towards her.

"Do not listen to him, purest one! Run, run away from him now. Humans are known for their greed," Firefly warned her. The small unicorn jumped quickly away from the man and began to run far way from him. But she did not get far...because the man called Abir threw his rope around her blessed neck, and held her with all of his might...never to let go.

"Yes! Yes, Abir! Hold her tight!" the other man yelled, running fast towards his friend. Thomas was overjoyed at his catch. Yes...his days of darkness have passed. There would once again be a famous horse breeder...by the name of Thomas Wood. 

****

The small unicorn stood in darkness...caged within the steel bindings that surrounded her. She could not even move...the cage only the size of herself. And she could hear nothing...only the beating of her own heart...and the sounds of her own voice. _I have failed my kind. The unicorns will fall unto darkness...and will forever be forgotten. And all because I could not save them, _the small unicorn thought to herself, not even knowing that she had spoken aloud.

"No...you have not failed, purest one," a voice spoke, being only the Firefly's voice. The unicorn felt a pang of happiness within herself. She knew that the Firefly was the only one who would not leave her, and for that, she was glad.

"I shall die here, just like all other unicorns that are captured. I will become more and more mortal every moment that I dwell here....until....until I am witheredand gone forever. Forgotten," the small unicorn said.

"You will not stay here for long. We will find some way to leave. Some way," Firefly explained, his voice becoming only a whisper. 

"I believed them, Firefly. I believed that these humans were truly good. I could almost see it in their eyes."

"Every human has some good within themselves. There are only a few who truly find it. But when you looked into their eyes, you must have seen the goodness yourself...before they had even found it. And that was what misdirected you, purest one. But, one day--one day these humans will find the goodness themselves. And maybe it will happen sooner than you think...and they will free us." The firefly stopped, because just as he said that, a loud booming noise surrounded them, followed by a blinding light that fell over the unicorn and the Firefly.

The small unicorn could not see beyond the light, but as her eyes focused, she saw the same men who had captured her standing in front of her. And standing with them, with hair the color of the golden sun and eyes the color of the foaming ocean,was a beautiful girl...by the name of Catherine.

****

The girl stepped forward from the two men and gazed at the small unicorn, with eyes wide open. She gasped loudly and clasped her hand over her rose lips.

"She's a beauty, isn't she?" the older man spoke to her. "I knew you would love her, Catherine. And now she is yours. A gift with love from your father...for bringing light into my world." The man walked over to the girl and threw his big arms around his small daughter. "Without you, Catherine, I would be nothing." And after saying this, the man kissed his daughter on the forehead. But Catherine did not say a word...she only kept her eyes on the creature before her. She never thought that she would see a unicorn again, but here it was...before her very eyes. 

**** 


	9. He killed them all

A/N: Oh my God! I am So incredibly sorry that I haven't updated this story in the longest time. I've just been so busy with school and trying to get all of my homework and essays done. I never thought that the eleventh grade would be this hard...and so stressful. I mean, the first week of school I had to do three essays. Don't you think that's pushing it a little too far? Anyway, I'll try really hard to update more often. Sorry. Here's another chapter. It's kind of short...but, like I said, I haven't had much time to write anymore. Okay, I'll stop talking. Here it is:

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"Father...she's gorgeous, but...where did you get her?" Catherine asked in a quiet whisper, the words barely leaving her lips. Her eyes would not leave the unicorn before her. All of these long years she had thought that she would never again see a unicorn. She had thought her father killed them all.

"Well, darling, I happened to come across a merchant who was selling her off." Thomas glanced quickly at his trainer, Abir, who only looked sorrowfully away. "He was asking a mighty high price for the beauty, but it was worth the money. And I want you to have her, because my daughter deserves the best that there is. Now what do you suppose you'll name her?"

Catherine looked up into her father's dark eyes and sighed. She could see that he was lying. She could always see. "I will think of a name in time, father," she said, turning away from her father's face and looking back at the sacred unicorn. Sighing, she said, "Let us go inside. It is getting late and I should cook dinner." Thomas nodded sadly and walked quietly out of the dark barn. He felt as if Catherine wasn't pleased with his gift.... She was hardly ever pleased with anything. Thomas has tried to give Catherine anything that she ever wanted, only for her love in return, and Catherine had loved him...but she seemed never truly happy like all other young people her age. It would be hard, though, never having a mother to love you...and only a father who was constantly busy with himself, Thomas thought, no wonder she is never happy.

****

The small unicorn sighed once the humans left and the light turned to darkness once more.. "That girl...she seemed different," she said to the Firefly. "She was unlike those other two humans."

"She knows you are a unicorn," the Firefly spoke.

"What? How do you know this?" Though, the small unicorn had sensed it too.

"The way she looked at you, purest one. She is the only one of the three mortal humans who can see what you truly are. I knew that we would find such people as her in this world. It was only a matter of where we would find them."

"And we have found her. Maybe she will be the one to help us."

"She may."

And then the two companions went silent. There was no more to talk about. They had only to wait.

***

Late into the night, Catherine was sitting in the dark of her room, gazing out of her window. She could not sleep, nor even think of anything other than the unicorn her father had brought her. He obviously did not realize that his white horse was the most purest of all immortal creatures. But then, he didn't even realize that all of the beautiful horses that once dwelled in the Shadow Valley were also immortal unicorns. She had done everything she could to stop him, but he did not listen. And she herself had let the deaths of the purest ones come to pass. 

"No," she barely whispered. "This shan't happen again." And then she stood up quickly and dressed out of her nightgown, only to find herself walking down the long, wooden hallway of her home...in a rush to help the purest one. It felt as if she was responsible. Then, only glancing at her father asleep in his bed, she made her way down the long stairs and walked quickly out into the night air.

Catherine walked across the sodden ground, her bare feet gently touching the cold ground below her, hurrying as fast as she could, to the barn that laid ahead of her. She was planning to release the unicorn from it's cage and bring it out of the dark valley...to make sure that it was free from being captured. Smiling to herself, she came upon the dark wooden barn door and, hesitating for only a moment, pushed it open, letting the moon's glowing light fall across the unicorn that was caged before her.

In the light of the moon, the unicorn's worn coat turned into gleaming light. Her horn lit up with magical glistening dust and her eyes returned to their immortal glow. Catherine's face lit up at the sight before her. "I never thought that I would see one of your kind again," she spoke softly, her voice sounding off such great joy.

The small unicorn glowed with happiness. "You can see me," she said to the girl.

Catherine smiled. "Yes...I can. I can see all unicorns...I just did not know if there were any unicorns left in the world. But now I see that there are."

The unicorn and the girl stood silently before each other, until the unicorn, once again, spoke...her voice soft and dulcet. "There are only a few left. We live in the Sacred Forest," the small unicorn told her. "And I am sent into the world of mortals...so that I may save them."

Catherine stared at the beautiful unicorn for what seemed the longest of times, until her blue gleaming eyes were filled with tears; tears that fell down her soft, pale cheeks. She smiled sadly at the unicorn and stepped closer towards the cage that imprisoned the beautiful creature. "The world of men has become corrupted," she spoke in a whisper. "And my father has fallen unto it." She lifted her pale hand up to the cage and held it to touch the unicorn. "He did not mean to harm them. He only meant to gain what he had lost," she whispered as she gently touched the unicorn with the tip of her delicate fingers.

"Whom did he harm?" the small unicorn asked the beautiful girl before her, still awed at the crystals falling from her sparkling eyes. Why did the girl do such a thing...as did her own blessed mother?

"The immortals...such as yourself," the girl whispered, her crystal tears now flowing down her damp, but still beautiful face. "They all died," she sobbed, "all of the blessed unicorns. But lo! He did not see them as the were; no one did. Only I."

The unicorn's horn dimmed and she held her head down to the metal floor of her cage. She understood more than she had ever imagined. _They died, _she kept on telling herself. _All of them...All of them that still lived among the mortals. And no one even knew._


	10. Leaving Shadow Valley

A/N: Sorry this took forever to be updated, but I couldn't log on to Fanfiction.com But now, I'm able to again...so I'll try to update more. Here's chapter 10. Sorry it's so short....I'll have to start making the chapters longer.

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The night was still young when the beautiful girl and the sacred unicorn fled through the valley, quickly but almost silently fleeing the valley of such corruption. The two seemed to glow among the night, the girl's golden hair shining in the light of the moon...making her hair like an angel's halo around her beautiful face. And the small unicorn's horn glistening with her pure magic, with the small Firefly glittering around her horn. They were the only light in the dark valley, and they quickly fled from the darkness...never to return. 

"We seek a small mortal child...a girl...that lives among royalty. Do you know where we could find such a child?" the small unicorn asked Catherine, her voice not even a breath short, though she had been fleeing the valley for some time already. Catherine sighed.

"I do not know, unicorn. This land is so immense, even if I had the gift of traveling all over this earth, I would never be able to see every village and every kingdom that this earth has to offer. Yet, I know of a kingdom that lays east of Shadow Valley....It is not far from here at all, because I have been there many times beforehand," Catherine spoke in a whisper. "There may be a chance that your child resides there."

"Then we shall go there," the small unicorn said to her. " But what shall become of you?" she asked the beautiful girl. 

Catherine's eyes closed and she sighed deeply, letting her breath slowly out of her sweet mouth. "I do not know, unicorn. It seems like my life has faded away and I am living in a dream...a dream that never subsides and I will forever be sleeping within it. My father has changed so much and I do not know what to do with him anymore."

"Will you come with us?" the small unicorn whispered suddenly, her voice seeming to echo in the night air. Catherine stopped suddenly and faced the small unicorn.

"What?" she asked the unicorn. The Firefly then glowed before her face and spoke to the girl, finally making his presence known to her.

"We need your help, Catherine," the Firefly spoke to her, and Catherine's mouth hung open in shock. "We cannot do this without you, for you can speak to your kind and to the immortals as well. You are pure of heart and we need those such as yourself to help us find this special child. What do you have here? Only a father who had lost his morality in this corrupt earth. Please, Catherine, will you join us? I have spend my last hundred years in a forest...all alone with only my thoughts to comfort me in my times of need. But now, now I have finally found my only purpose. For some reason, I happened to come upon this unicorn in her time of need...and now I've come to realize that my entire life has been for this. I was made to help this unicorn...and to save her race...and all that is left of morality and goodness. This is what I was created for. If not, why was I ever made? And I cannot fail....I cannot fail my purpose...and my only friend. I need you."

The small unicorn felt her heart beat faster than it ever had...and she looked up at the Firefly that was floating in the air, knowing that she could never have found a better companion. And then she looked at Catherine, seeing the girl's face soften as she held her breath. "But I must help my father. That is _my _purpose," she whispered. As she spoke, the Firefly glowed near her face and rested upon her shoulder.

"Catherine, all the purity that is let in the world are the unicorns. They are all that is left. _Your_ purpose is to help them, too. And maybe your recompense is the help that your father needs," the Firefly explained to the girl, who lifted her finger to the Firefly and felt the heat of his glow on her fingertips. She smiled slightly and promised in her heart that she would never let the unicorns die. Though, what she did not know was that the small unicorn heard her promise...as did all of the immortals who were watching her with hope. But Mother Earth only closed her eyes and let one of her crystal tears fall from her pure face...still in awe that after all of these thousands of years, she finally let herself cry.

And without another word, the unicorn, the girl with the golden hair, and the glowing Firefly turned from the valley of darkness and stepped closer to the Lost Mountains, where they knew that the child was beyond. The tall, soaring peaks of the Lost Mountains loomed over the group as they walked onward to the corrupted world before them, yet they did not fear what they were about to cross into. **_We depend on you _**were Mother Earth's final words that still lingered in the small unicorn's mind. And she, too, promised that she would never let her kind die. 


End file.
